Fortress of Hera.
Situated atop the Crown Mountains, this formidable stronghold serves as the main base of the Ultramarines.
Because the fires of war have gradually spread here, more than a dozen defensive lines have been set up around the fortress.
As the wealthiest and largest Chapter, the Ultramarines number over two hundred thousand.Even though they have dispersed across the Five Hundred Worlds to repel the onslaught of Chaos, tens of thousands of warriors remain to hold the Fortress of Hera.
These warriors, charged with defending the fortress and their Primarch, are virtually all battle-hardened veterans and mbers of the Honor Guard.Many Terminator Armors and Dreadnoughts bolster their ranks as well.
Yet even they are not enough to withstand the frenzied power of Chaos.
This ti, a fully assembled Chaos warband fleet has co to assault the Fortress of Hera. They have at least tens of thousands of Chaos Traitors among their ranks.
Furthermore, the daemons of Khorne have joined the invasion.
Leading them is a terrifying Bloodthirster calling itself Ka'Bandha, who, along with two other greater daemons of Khorne and an even larger horde of daemons, is advancing on the fortress.
Hellfire has nearly consud everything in their path.
That Bloodthirster alone is likely more troubleso than all the Traitor Marines combined.
Inside the hall:
Chief Librarian Tigurius kneels before a shrine in prayer. Soon, he opens his eyes and stands with the support of his force staff.
His gaze is shrouded in white light, and complex wiring connecting the back of his head to his power armor crackles with arcs of electricity.
"Any news, brother?"
Chapter Master Calgar approaches. His heavy, deep-blue power armor is like a massive, unbreakable bulwark, reassuring all who see it.
He lightly raises the massive Gauntlets of Ultramar and taps Tigurius on the shoulder:
"Have you found anything?"
"The prophecy is even grimr than I imagined. I see no hope of victory..."
Concern clouds Tigurius's face. "The warning from that unknown being was correct; it foresaw everything!"
"At least we believed it, didn't we?"
A few days ago, a strange chanical 'canned contraption' suddenly appeared near the Fortress of Hera.
After the Ultramarines captured it, they retrieved a shocking ssage from its voxbeacons.
Soone claiming to be a loyal servant of the Emperor—a prophet, an all-knowing, all-powerful savior—warned them that the Five Hundred Worlds would be subjected to a Chaos invasion.
Specifically, Macragge was about to face a catastrophe they would struggle to hold back.
This news startled Tigurius because he too had foreseen a looming disaster.
Yet the savior's information was even more detailed, revealing the exact enemies involved and their aims. It also foretold the arrival of certain reinforcents.
After confirming that the chanical device carried no malice, Tigurius chose to trust the warning.
He sensed a trace of sothing sacred emanating from it—sothing no evil force could have created.
Subsequently, with persuasion from the Chief Librarian, Chapter Master Calgar began war preparations.
He summoned many elite warriors to defend the Fortress of Hera and also called for additional reinforcents.
However, ti was far too short.
Very soon, as the prophecy described, Chaos forces launched a grand offensive against Ultramar, engulfing the entire sector in war.
Macragge beca the focal point of Chaos's assault.
Tigurius blad himself:
"Still, we underestimated Chaos. They spare no cost to destroy this place.The defensive lines we have are insufficient to withstand these hordes of Chaos..."
"We had no choice," Calgar said resolutely. "Our ti was too limited, and Ultramar is vast. Chaos daemons are assaulting so many fronts at once that we cannot redeploy more of our warriors without condemning the other worlds."
His face hardened. "Fighting in the most difficult battles is our duty. We've survived countless life-and-death struggles—this is no different."
"A final battle!"
He glanced upward through a gap in the chapel's ceiling at the sun, which was almost entirely shrouded by blood-red clouds."I'm reminded of the last line of the 'First Lant': 'Praise the sun that heralds the final doom.'"
"A fine speech," Tigurius responded. "Though I recall soone else saying it before."
"Really?"
"When we were cornered by daemons in that valley..."
Calgar kept his stern look. "All right, it appears I'm not suited for stirring pre-battle oratory. But at tis like this, I feel compelled to say sothing."
"Courage and Honor!"
Tigurius gripped his force staff.
Hearing these words, Calgar's tone grew solemn. "You're right. Courage and Honor!"
He turned to walk outside:
"Let's face this final fight together. That mysterious savior—whose cryptic talk is so like yours—was not lying.
Our guests will arrive soon!"
Tigurius followed:
"Everything is unfolding as he prophesied. I hope it is all true."
A hopeful gleam filled his eyes.
...
Belisarius Cawl and his party managed to slip past the Chaos blockade in their landing craft and arrive at the Fortress of Hera.
They discovered Chapter Master Calgar and Chief Librarian Tigurius already awaiting their arrival.
"Lord Calgar, we co with an urgent request. We must go to the Shrine of Correction and seek audience with your—"
Belisarius Cawl chose his words carefully.
After all, it was abrupt to suggest entering the shrine and requesting an audience with the Primarch, who had been unconscious for ten millennia—and doing so alongside an Eldar alien.
It was bound to provoke the Ultramarines greatly.
"Belisarius Cawl, are you here to fulfill the agreent made ten thousand years ago?" Tigurius asked: "Did you bring the sacred artifact? May we see it?"
Belisarius Cawl glanced at Yvraine. Both looked utterly astonished.
Healing the Primarch was a secret among secrets. They had never breathed a word of it beyond their circle.
"Though we do not know how you learned of this, that indeed is our purpose."
He chose not to dwell on the issue.
The top priority now was to use the sacred casket to awaken the slumbering Primarch before Chaos breached the fortress.
Belisarius Cawl's chanical arm drew over the hovering platform and gently opened the sacred casket.
Within it lay a brand-new, majestic suit of power armor—known as the Armor of Destiny.
He also displayed a new weapon prepared for the Primarch: the Emperor's own sword.
"It seems the prophecy holds true..."
Upon seeing the relic and the sword, Tigurius nodded, eyes brimming with excitent.
He felt a renewed sense of awe toward that mysterious savior, whose prophecies were so precise—beyond even his own psychic capabilities. Such a being must be fearso indeed.
Tigurius turned to Calgar.
Whether or not these individuals could enter the Shrine of Correction to see their "Father" in the throne-shrine was ultimately up to the Chapter Master.
Calgar hesitated briefly and then nodded: "You go with them to the shrine. Keep an eye on them."
No sooner had he spoken than the Fortress of Hera violently shook—the Chaos assault had begun!
Everyone decided that Tigurius would lead Belisarius Cawl and his aide, Yvraine, to the Shrine of Correction to awaken the Primarch.
anwhile, Calgar, Saint Celestine, Greyfax, and the others would stay behind to organize the defensive line and buy Belisarius Cawl ti.
Boom!
Shells roared, and the howls of daemons thundered.
The grand Chaos offensive began. Raging flas of war scorched the Fortress of Hera!
The Chaos fleet unleashed its trump card, dropping dozens of heavily reinforced "Dreadclaws" from orbit.
Each Dreadclaw was packed with Chaos Space Marines!
They plunged into the atmosphere, heading straight for the fortress below.
"For Ultramar!"
Like a swarm of furious hornets, the Ultramarines' interceptors and gunships threw themselves at the Dreadclaws, determined to bring them down before they could defile this sacred ground.
Hiss—More Heldrakes poured in, shielding the Dreadclaws.
These daemon engines unleashed their vile breath of dragonfire, drawing the defenders' anti-air fire onto themselves.
Without any attempt at self-preservation, they dove into the intercept lines, breaking apart under the defenders' guns if necessary.
Through their suicidal tactics, the Heldrake swarm tore open a bloody path in the Ultramarines' anti-air defenses, allowing the Dreadclaws to make planetfall.
Boom, boom, boom!
The earth itself seed to quake. Giant slabs of rock ca crashing down, signaling that even the fortress walls were collapsing.
The Dreadclaws penetrated the barriers of the Fortress of Hera one by one.
Amid the foul reek of Chaos, hundreds upon hundreds of Chaos Space Marines poured forth, charging straight for the shrine.
Roar—
At the sa ti, accompanied by the thunderous and malevolent blare of warhorns, the daemons of Khorne unleashed their assault as well.
Their blazing hellfire cracked the ground, and skull cannons belched fiery bone shells that pumled the outer bastions.
These massive stone fortifications quickly began to split and crumble.
Enormous Juggernauts of Khorne snorted like rolling thunder, their fiery breath saturating the air with scorching heat.
Twisted and colossal, they radiated a primal, overwhelming power—an unstoppable flood crashing into the walls.
Yet they were intercepted by the Imperium's steel behemoths.
Giant Dreadnoughts took the Juggernauts' impact head-on with their armor, unleashing devastating salvos upon the surrounding foes.
All around them, Ultramarines and Black Templar warriors fought a desperate lee against hordes of crimson Bloodletters.
Explosive bolts virtually filled the space ahead, and the pale-blue glow of power swords flickered without cease.
At that mont, battle engulfed the entire Fortress of Hera.
Still, the enemy was far too nurous. The Space Marines could not hold them all back; their lines shrank step by step.
Chaos advanced relentlessly toward the Shrine of Correction.
At that mont, one of the shrine's massive walls collapsed, exposing the interior.
On a throne within lay the awe-inspiring figure of the Primarch, still asleep within a stasis field.
"It has been ten thousand years. At last I fulfill my promise, coming to you now!"
Belisarius Cawl, relieved of a great burden, placed the sacred casket before the Primarch.
It whirred and humd loudly, like a giant chanical flytrap opening its petals wide.
This device would automatically clad the Primarch in the Armor of Destiny while employing unknown thods to heal his wounds.
Tigurius eyed the machine, which teed with scorching energies, sprouting chanical tendrils, clamps to hold limbs in place, and a bone drill that buzzed ominously.
He found it sowhat unsettling.
Belisarius Cawl noticed Tigurius's expression. "No need to worry. I spent centuries perfecting this technology, eliminating any possible errors. Once activated, the only outco is the successful awakening of this Son of the Emperor."
Tigurius did not intervene. He sensed a powerful life energy coursing within the device.
Given the perilous situation, no one could afford to hesitate. Only by reviving their Father could they hope to save everything.
Otherwise, Macragge would be destroyed, and the Primarch's body would be desecrated by Chaos—the true objective behind this invasion.
Boom!
Several shells exploded inside the shrine. Although blocked by Belisarius Cawl's force field, the resulting shockwave caused the sacred casket to shift off its base, sparking.
Simultaneously, over a dozen Chaos Terminators charged through the breach in the shrine's walls, trying to break in.
"No, brothers—stop them!"
Calgar led Terminators of the Ultramarines to intercept the Chaos Terminators.
He swung the Gauntlets of Ultramar, the field-wreathed fists pounding through the enemy's defenses.
Bolts of crackling lightning sent the foe's helt and skull exploding in a gory burst of tal fragnts and blood.
As the body fell, Calgar pivoted, raising two bolt guns that roared with thunder, unleashing a hail of death upon the surrounding enemies.
A mont later, another Terminator was blown apart by explosive rounds.
Before Calgar could react further, a roar of overwhelming fury made his heart lurch.
Standing before him was a ten-ter-tall daemon wreathed in fla—its presence alone was enough to unsettle even this mighty Chapter Master.
It was Ka'Bandha, the Bloodthirster of Khorne!
Boom!
Wielding a giant axe, Ka'Bandha smashed through the defensive barrier, allowing more daemons to surge toward the shrine.
Calgar shouted over his vox: "Where are our reinforcents? Why aren't they here yet?"
But the next mont, his link to his communications officer went dead.
Under the combined onslaught of traitors and daemons, the line was close to collapse.
Still, the warriors fought on!
Saint Celestine radiated golden light, wings propelling her through enemy ranks. Each strike and leap claid multiple Chaos lives.
Perched on a stone coffin, Greyfax fired her boltgun at the abominations closing in on all sides.
"Pathetic wretches..."
Ka'Bandha watched it all with derision. Flanked by two other bloodthirsters of Khorne, the Chief Bloodthirster finally advanced.
He took hold of an Ultramarine in passing and crushed him effortlessly.
A single sweep of his massive wings knocked a group of Ultramarines flying.
"I shall stand against all who oppose !"
Several Dreadnoughts charged forward, throwing themselves at the towering daemon to drive him back, clamping on to him in a desperate bid to halt his march.
"Scrap tal clinging to life dares bar the path of the great Ka'Bandha?Your deaths an nothing!"
Irritated, Ka'Bandha swung his vicious axe, shattering two Dreadnoughts.
Then he opened his huge maw and unleashed a searing warp-fla upon the last one.
Within those flas, the Dreadnought's pilot howled in unimaginable agony, the tornt striking deep into his soul.
At last, the Dreadnought collapsed.
"Sacrifice...has aning!"
Yet with its dying blow, the Dreadnought managed to blast Ka'Bandha's eyes, dealing him a grievous wound.
Boom!
The Bloodthirster roared, stomping the Dreadnought into wreckage.
Roar—
Not far away, Calgar, Saint Celestine, Greyfax, and others were leading their warriors in combat against the massive wave of Khorne daemons and Traitor Marines.
But Chaos was overwhelming, and the line was breaking. Despair began to seep in.
Still, there was no sign of the reinforcents they had hoped for.
Just before the frontline shattered, a teleportation array lit up—the reinforcents had arrived!
Boom—
Accompanied by a crackling hiss, a radiant psychic aura rippled across the battlefield, searing many daemons that shrieked in pain.
Dozens of tall, heavily armored figures materialized from the teleportation array.
They slamd down massive warding staves, blocking the tide of daemons!
"Armored in faith, shielded by devotion, and ard with purity of purpose—fear no power of Chaos!"
They were the Grey Knights, the Daemon Hunters, the Emperor's...Hamr!
The Grey Knights ford a defensive bulwark, using their combined psychic might to fortify their Grand Master's ward.
These formidable warriors carved into the daemonic horde, temporarily stabilizing the line.
Seeing this, Saint Celestine and the others breathed a sigh of relief—but their hopes were soon dashed again.
They had underestimated the Bloodthirster's might.
"Grey Knights?"
Ka'Bandha's glare betrayed a flicker of disgust. He charged into their line with unstoppable force, slaying several Grey Knights and ripping a hole in their psychic barrier.
The crushing power of Chaos closed in around the shrine, and although the warriors fought with all they had, they fell one after another.
More flung themselves from piles of the dead to take their foes with them.
Like an avenging angel, Saint Celestine dove down at Ka'Bandha, trying to halt his slaughter.
Before long, she was grievously wounded—her left arm torn, and after several brief exchanges, Ka'Bandha's claw seized her midair, trying to crush her outright.
As the claw tightened, Saint Celestine felt her bones beginning to snap.
Yet she continued chanting her hymn to the Emperor, hoping the Great Will would grant guidance—so sign of salvation.
She beheld her brothers and sisters being massacred across the battlefield; a single golden tear rolled down her pale cheek.
She prayed, "O Great Lord, we need Your salvation!"
Boom—
Suddenly, space twisted violently, attracting every eye on the battlefield. The teleportation array flared once again.
A towering figure slowly erged!
(End of Chapter)
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